Discussing the Christian walk with intention and purpose

What is God’s Will?

“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” Luke 22:42

Today I am studying Psalm 16, a Messianic Psalm. Reading through the verses one can almost envision Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, sorrowful and intensely distressed, kneeling in prayer to the Father, in soul-filled agony, blood dripping as sweat from His pores. Psalm 16 is the prophetic picture of this scene.

We also discern a compliant Jesus putting all He had into the hands of the Father, trusting Him on every level. The Gospel of Luke suggests Jesus might have opted for another way, but more importantly it demonstrates that regardless of our thinking, the Father’s plans always take precedent over our own.

Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust. O my soul, you have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You.” Psalm 16:1-2

What is the Will of God

We have touched on the issue before and what the Bible proclaims. As a matter of fact the book of 1 Thessalonians has a bunch to say on the subject. Check out these two passages:

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. 1 Thessalonians 4:4-7

Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18

That’s some pretty cut-and-dry doctrine right there. I particularly like the last little portion, ‘Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, (and) in everything give thanks.’ When we do those things, God’s precise will for any given situation will be revealed.

Or will it?

When we examine the passages that refer to God’s will, what we actually garner is God’s direction. His will on the other hand is absolute and it encompasses every possible dynamic, therefore it cannot be known in its entirety–God’s direction is a glimpse of His will. In other words when God says, ‘Rejoice always,” given our situation, we might be baffled–the action is but a snapshot of an immeasurable concept. When God gives a directive, He has taken into consideration the beginning from the end and everything in between; such things we are unable to fathom.

Simply put, it’s the choice we would make if we had all the information. It’s also typically the opposite of what our flesh yearns for.

Consider a two year old. Approach the child with a Hershey Kiss and a thousand dollar bill, which one will he choose? We know that without proper guidance, he’s likely going to take the chocolate. If we explain to him why the cash is a better choice, he may or may not change his mind. The problem is the child cannot perceive bigger ideas; they’re too abstract. “Don’t touch the stove,” mom says, “or you’ll get burned.” The problem is that a child has no concept of what it means to be burned.

The same is true for us; our vision is not much better than that of a two year old, but hopefully we have come to trust our Father. So when God says, ‘Abstain from sexual immorality,’ we abstain knowing that we don’t know the bigger picture. When He says, ‘Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, (and) in everything give thanks,’ we obey, despite the fact it might make absolutely no sense whatsoever.

We need to remember that if we had all the information, God’s will for us and our choices would be entirely the same. But we don’t have all the information, therefore the question that remains is, “Do we trust God to guide us in our limited vision?”

You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

‘What would Jesus do,’ is a wonderful pronouncement. I see only one problem arising with the slogan; “What if you don’t know Jesus?” If you don’t know what Jesus did, how will you know what Jesus would do? Today, I am confident in saying that it is God’s will that you know Jesus better. Why? Because He will illuminate the path of life. In His presence we will discover joy to its fullest and pleasures everlasting. It’s God’s will.